‘Be careful being so bold, Peter.’ That’s how the writers of “I Will Follow” might begin if you talked to them about this song and what it says. Being confident that Jesus is the one to follow is a good thing, right? But, before you get lost in the song’s power and the synergy you feel singing or listening to this 2010 composition with others, step back. Think. Consider what you are mouthing to Him. After considering all the implications, the word ‘follow’ might seem as daunting as walking in an astronaut’s bootprint on the moon (see the picture). The composers might even sit with you and open up with a story from Mark 8. You could turn there right now…
Would you be prepared to have the Creator-God call you Satan? That’s what Chris Tomlin reminds us happened to Peter, as he tried to tell Jesus that He was wrong, that He could not possibly be right about the approach of the Messiah’s death. You’re not really ready to follow, unless you fully appreciate the total cost. Not just for one day, but a lifetime. If you want to follow me, you have to be willing to do what I do, even die like me. And there’s also that part about loving and serving people too. And, you cannot get comfortable, because you gotta get up and move, and go anywhere He goes. So, what happens to my agenda? I have none, except His. That’s the blunt message. Pretty raw stuff, if you’re not prepared for it. Tomlin says ‘It’s a huge thing to say’, these words the worshipper vocalizes in the song’s chorus. He emphasizes that over and over again in a video he lets us see as he tells what he thinks about this proposition of being a no-holds-barred disciple.
Tomlin seems to have the humility about the song’s development that he admonishes the song’s listeners to adopt. He says that Jason Ingram and Rueben Morgan were the real masterminds behind the song, and that he jumped into its development in a comparatively small way. Maybe that means Ingram and Morgan were the ones who really initially saw the need to spur their own personal discipleship, their commitment to Him. Tomlin describes this commitment as cross-like for the believer, but also as an honor to carry daily this promise. So, it’s kind of a mixture of being humble to His lifestyle, but also being a risk-taker, a pledge-taker. Maybe I’m not quite there, I admit at times. But, I can watch others around me, and see what the risky life looks like. Maybe that’s what happened to the twelve. They hung around Him enough, and finally figured out that life was really about giving in to His way of doin’ it. ‘It’s huge’, Tomlin reminds me. But, the payoff will be too. As huge as following someone to the Moon? It might seem as impossible as that, sometimes, but in reality He wants me to follow Him even further. All the way to Heaven.
The below links take you to some comments by Chris Tomlin about the song’s meaning:
A link to a biography of Jason Ingram:
A link to a biography of Reuben Morgan:
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